A method and apparatus for the characterization of an optical pulse includes splitting an optical pulse into two replicas separated by a delay, modulating at least one of the two replicas with a linear temporal phase modulation, measuring a spectrum of the modulated replicas, and characterizing the optical pulse using the measured spectra. In one embodiment of the present invention a spectral phase difference between the replicas is obtained from the measured spectrum using Fourier Transform Spectral Interferometry.